The Problem
Detachment 458 had been running on Wix for years — functional, but showing its age. As a volunteer-run veterans organization, nobody on the team was a developer; every content update meant fighting Wix's editor, and the design itself hadn't kept pace with what a serious nonprofit site needs today: fast load times, a clean mobile experience for members checking event dates on their phones, and a real system for archiving years of "Iron Mike" newsletters instead of burying them in old blog posts.
There was also the platform-lock problem — every year on Wix meant another subscription payment for a site that, functionally, just needed to display information reliably and let officers post updates.
Design Decisions
Astro over a CMS. A volunteer-run org doesn't need — and can't maintain — a full content management system with logins, plugins, and security patches. A static Astro build means the site is fast by default, has no server to get hacked, and costs nothing to host. Content updates (new events, new officers, new newsletters) go through simple, well-organized files rather than a database.
Mobile-first navigation. Most visitors checking event dates or meeting times are doing it from a phone, often quickly. The nav collapses into a clean hamburger menu below the desktop breakpoint, with every primary page one tap away.
A self-serve newsletter archive. The "Iron Mike" newsletter goes back years. Instead of a flat list that would only grow more unwieldy, it's built as a structured archive so the Detachment can keep adding PDFs going forward without needing to call a developer every time.
The Build
- Full redesign and content migration off Wix — 8 pages, ground up
- Built with Astro, deployed on Cloudflare Pages for global speed
- Astro View Transitions for smooth cross-page navigation
- Mobile-first responsive nav with a hamburger dropdown
- Self-serve newsletter/PDF archive system the Detachment maintains itself
The Result
We couldn’t be happier with our new website! From start to finish, he was professional, easy to work with, and truly listened to our vision and design needs. He delivered a product that was far beyond our expectations and ahead of schedule! If you’re looking for a website designer who listens, delivers, and goes above and beyond, we highly recommend SLEAk!!!
The Detachment is off Wix entirely, on a site that loads fast anywhere, and officers can now add newsletters and events themselves — no developer call required for routine updates.